wikimihaifandomcom-20200214-history
Education in Mexico
Education in Mexico has a long history. The Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico was founded by royal decree in 1551, a few months after the National University of San Marcos in Lima. By comparison, Harvard College, the oldest in Anglo-America, was founded in 1636. Education in Mexico was until relatively recently largely confined to elite males and under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico. The Mexican state has been directly involved in education since the nineteenth century, promoting secular education. Control of education was a source of ongoing conflict between the Mexican state and the Roman Catholic Church, which since the colonial era had exclusive charge of education.3456 The mid nineteenth-century Liberal Reform separated church and state, which had a direct impact on education. President Benito Juárez sought the expansion of public schools. During the lengthy tenure of president Porfirio Díaz, the expansion of education became a priority under a cabinet-level post held by Justo Sierra; Sierra also served President Francisco I. Madero in the early years of the Mexican Revolution. The 1917 Constitution strengthened the Mexican state's power in education, undermining the power of the Roman Catholic Church to shape the educational development of Mexicans. During presidency of Álvaro Obregón in the early 1920s, his Minister of Public Education José Vasconcelos implemented a massive expansion of access to public, secular education. This work was built on and expanded in the administration of Plutarco Elías Callesby Moisés Sáenz. In the 1930s, the Mexican government under Lázaro Cárdenas mandated socialist education in Mexico and there was considerable push back from the Roman Catholic Church as an institution. Socialist education was repealed during the 1940s, with the administration of Manuel Ávila Camacho. A number of private universities have opened since the mid twentieth century. Education in Mexico is currently regulated by the Secretariat of Public Education (Spanish: Secretaría de Educación Pública) (SEP). Education standards are set by this Ministry at all levels except in "autonomous" universities chartered by the government (e.g., Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México). Accreditation of private schools is accomplished by a mandatory approval and registration with this institution. Religious instruction is prohibited in public schools; however, religious associations are free to maintain private schools, which receive no public funds. In the same fashion as other education systems, education has identifiable stages: Primary School, Junior High School (or Secondary School), High School, Higher education, and Postgraduate education. In Mexico, basic education is normally divided in three steps: primary school (primaria), comprising grades 1-6; junior high school (secundaria), comprising grades 7-9; and high school (preparatoria), comprising grades 10-12. Depending on definitions, Primary education comprises primaria and secundaria, which are compulsory by law, while Secondary education only includes preparatoria, which was not compulsory a few years ago, but it has been made mandatory as well. Structure of the basic education system Primary School The terms "Primary School" or "Elementary School" usually corresponds to primaria, comprising grades 1-6, when the student's age is 6 to 12 years old. It starts the basic compulsory education system. These are the first years of schooling. Depending on the school, a bilingual education may be offered from the beginning, where half the day instruction is in Spanish, and the rest is in a second language, for example, English or French. Junior High School The terms "Junior High School" or "Middle School" usually correspond to secundaria, comprising grades 7-9 when the student's age is 12 to 15 years old it is part of the basic compulsory education system, it follows primary school, and comes before "high school" (preparatoria). At this level, more specialized subjects may be taught such as Physics, Chemistry, and World History. There is also the técnica which provides vocational training, and the telesecundaria which provides distance learning.7 Despite the similarities of the words "Secondary school" and secundaria, in Mexico the former is usually translated to preparatoria, while in other countries, such as Puerto Rico, or within the Spanish-speaking populations of the United States, the term secundaria refers to university. High School The terms "High School"8 usually corresponds to preparatoria or bachillerato, and follow "secundaria" comprising grades 10-12, when the student's age is 15 to 18 years old. Students may choose between two main kinds of high school programs: The SEP incorporated, and a University Incorporated one, depending on the state. Other minority of programs are available only for private schools, such as the International Baccalaureate which carries a completely different system. Nevertheless, in order to be taught, it must include a national subject at least. In addition, there are programs such as tecnología and comercio that prepare students for a particular vocational career.7 Preparatoria traditionally consists of three years of education, divided into six semesters, with the first semesters having a common curriculum, and the latter ones allowing some degree of specialization, either in physical sciences (physics, chemistry, biology, etc.) or social sciences (commerce, philosophy, law, etc.). The term bachillerato is most commonly used for institutions that offer a three-year education program that "prepares" the student with general knowledge to continue studying at a university. In contrast, the term preparatioria is most often used for institutions that provide vocational training, in two or three years, so the graduate can get a job as a skilled worker, for example, an assistant accountant, a bilingual secretary or a technician. Army School Educational Integration In 1993, educational integration was formally implemented nationwide through the reform article 41 of the General Education Law. This law mandates the integration of students with special needs into regular classrooms9. Although formally, the term ‘educational integration’ is used, ‘inclusive education’ is often used to describe the educational system10. Implementation of educational integration has taken many years and still continues face obstacles. Under the current model, students with severe disabilities that would not benefit from inclusion, study the same curriculum as regular classrooms in separate schools called Centros de Atencion Multiple Attention Center, or CAM. Otherwise, special needs students are placed in regular classrooms and are supported by the Unidades de Servicio y Apoyo a la Educación Regular or the Unit of Support Services for Regular Education, (USAER). This group is made up of special education teachers, speech therapists, psychologists and other professionals to help special needs students in the classroom and minimize barriers to their learning.11 Challenges to Educational Integration The combination of USAER professionals and regular teaching working in the same classroom has caused some issues for educational integration. Specifically, there is confusion about the roles of USAER professionals who work in regular classrooms. A study of USAER members found that regardless of urban or rural contexts, professionals had four common concerns. First, USAER professionals felt that they lacked preparation for working in the classroom. The second issue was feeling like their role had changed due to more demands being placed on them. The last two concerns were the lack of communication and collaboration between teachers and USAER professionals. Although the two work in the same classroom, they often work independently. However this creates problems when adjusting the curriculum for special needs students.10 Accessibility is another challenge for educational integration. Schools are required to have accessible buildings and classrooms, provide technical support and appropriate materials for special needs students12. However, implementation of these features is inconsistent across schools. A case study of a student with visual impairment revealed that the school did not provide her with braille textbooks and her mother had to teach her the material.13 A similar case study found that the school was not equipped for students with sensory disabilities. The school lacked accessible furniture, handicapped restrooms or proper modification for students with sensory disabilities. 12 Finally, training for new teachers doesn’t provide them enough experience with special needs students, making the shift to educational integration difficult. A study of 286 pre-service teachers found that a third of didn’t have any experience working with special needs students. Additionally, 44% of the teachers reported having no formal training in working with this population.14 A qualitative study on pre-service teachers assessed their attitude towards special needs students and their self efficacy found that overall most teachers have positive perceptions of inclusive education. However, teachers with more hours of training, more experience, and better knowledge of policies had higher levels of confidence in working with students with disabilities.15 Category:School